Hey.

Sorry for the prolonged silence but I've been swamped by a mountain of work of late. Of course, none of it was chargeable work (as valuable as the holy grail chalice from Indiana Jones in our office), but it nonetheless had to be done. Between coming in early, staying late and maintaining my regular TV viewing schedule once home, I haven't had time to blog on my recent reads or films, or to simply shoot the breeze. Things are slowly going back to normal now that a big round of meetings has come and gone, so I'll be back soon enough. I have to tell you guys about Me Before You, which I absolutely loved; Worst.Person.Ever which I absolutely hated; and more.

In the interim I figured I'd share this what I think hilarious video that I found on YouTube. It's the silliest thing, but it had me laughing hysterically. Nearly peed my pants at 0:14.

Joe

Joe is the dark and gritty tale of friendship and redemption featuring memorable and moving performances from Nicolas Cage, as the titular character, and young breakout star Tye Sheridan; as well as a jaw-dropping, scene-stealing performance from Gary Poulter, a real homeless man taken off the streets of Austin, Texas and daringly cast as the third male lead in our tale. Joe (Cage) is a hard-working but short-tempered ex-con who’s fair to his workers (day laborers who he hires to poison trees for a lumber company looking to clear land for new saplings), his own worst enemy when it comes to dealing with local law enforcement, and has a soft spot for a kid in need, namely Gary (Sheridan), an abused kid who one day shows up looking for work for himself and his good for nothing father.

Gary might be poor and uneducated but he has a sweetness and dignity to him that quickly endears Joe and his workers to him. Not intimidated by hard work, Gary will do whatever is necessary in order to earn a few bucks to bring food home for his mom and sister, his father Wade (Poulter), a mean, depraved and rootless drunkard, is another story, as he gets fired after his first day of work, only to later beat up Gary and steal his money. Joe knows better than to get involved in this family drama, but when the kid shows up at his home bruised and battered, he steps in and offers Gary not platitudes but warm clothes and food, and most importantly his friendship. When Wade’s depravity leads to circumstances beyond Gary’s control, he turns to Joe in his hour of need and forces him to make a life-changing decision.

I loved this movie. Joe is a tale that shocks with its searing darkness and hopelessness, and awes with incredibly powerful performances from the entire cast; Joe delivers a truly unforgettable experience. The ending of this tragic tale is a foregone conclusion from the get go – a runaway train you know is on a collision course with destiny; the only questions is the when and how many casualties in the oncoming wreck. You are nonetheless riveted to the screen; fully immersed in Joe’s world of good and evil, redemption and immorality; a hero, flawed and complex, whose anger and goodness are equally hidden just below the surface.

Though in the same vein as Mud, highlighting a relationship between a troubled adult and lost adolescent, Joe offers us an antihero whose struggles aren’t a resolution to his own mistakes but instead a gallant and heroic attempt at righting the shitty hand a young kid has been dealt. Joe is willing to sacrifice so that Gary can put down the baggage which he’s been carrying through life. Through his kindness and compassion he is more of a father to Gary than the sinister shadow of a man that has marred his young life.

The acting is truly exceptional. Much like Mud showed the true range of McConaughey’s talent, Joe serves to confirm Nicolas Cage’s sometimes overlooked acting chops. Whether it’s the barely contained rage visible on his face or a simple look of compassion or resignation, each is delivered effortlessly so that you truly forget its Cage and only see Joe. Sheridan is equal to his older counterparts; conveying all the false bravado and vulnerabilities of a child desperate and afraid.

As for Poulter, which I mentioned above, he was amazing. Physically, he seemed born for this role; embodying the wiry frame, crazy scraggily white hair, missing teeth and flinty blue eyes you’d expect from someone like Wade. Heck, I’m sure they didn’t have to use a lot, if any, make-up for filming, but it was truly his acting or presence on screen that resonates. Maybe he wasn’t acting but instead just being himself which is why it rang so true. Either way his every scene conveyed a rawness and savagery that seemed scarily too real. It’s heartbreaking to think what might have become of his life if this opportunity had come sooner. Sadly, the homeless movie star and ex-Navy man returned to the streets after filming ended on his potentially star-making role; suffering from seizures he ended up in the hospital where he was diagnosed with lung cancer and a few weeks later was found dead at a homeless campsite where his death was ruled an accidental drowning.

Joe is an incredibly raw and unflinching tale of sacrifice and redemption; highlighting the selflessness of a hero who bravely helps chart a new hopeful course for someone else’s life.

Dancing in Jaffa

Dancing in Jaffa is a documentary film from director Hilla Medalia in which four-time world dance champion Pierre Dulaine, who also appeared in Mad Hot Ballroom, goes back to his native Jaffa in hopes of helping to bridge the Israeli-Palestinian divide through dance by teaching both Jewish-Israeli and Palestinian-Israeli children how to dance, together no less. Born to an Irish father and Palestinian mother, Dulaine left Jaffa in 1948 at the age of 4 when his family, like many other Palestinians, was forced out of Jaffa by Israel.

The film captures Dulaine’s efforts teaching merengue, salsa and other ballroom dances to children in various schools, including two Jewish-Israeli, two Palestinian-Israeli and one integrated school. While he starts teaching each school separately, his goal is to have an integrated dance competition wherein Jewish and Palestinian children dance together as partners. Just selling the idea to parents and teachers alike is no easy feat, especially when you take into account that the Muslim boys and girls aren’t even allowed to touch one another. Some kids completely refuse to dance, while yet others cover their hands with the sleeves of their sweatshirts to avoid the dreaded boy-girl cooties.

At first reluctant and at times indifferent to Dulaine’s lessons, the children’s interest is piqued when he shares an old video of him and his dance partner, Yvonne Marceau, as they glided across the dance floor as if floating on air; ultimately turning to her for help in reaching his students. In an effort to seemingly help us connect with the subjects, the director focuses her coverage on three different students: Noor, a sad and angry Palestinian girl without many friends who is grieving the loss of her father; Alaa, a sweet and adorable Palestinian boy who lives in a humble fisherman’s shack with his parents and sibling; and Lois, an outgoing Jewish girl, whose mother shocks poor Alaa during a visit when she fesses up to the fact that Lois was born thanks to the use of a sperm bank.

Dancing in Jaffa is moving, sweet and eye-opening. At times offering us a measure of hope as we witness Dulaine’s efforts to positively touch the hearts and minds of these young children, it also highlights many of the reasons for the age old strife between these two groups of people and with it the sad realization that it will probably take a near miracle to bring peace to the region. As you take in the unbridgeable differences in religious beliefs, the fact that Palestinians feel like they are treated like second class citizens, and the bitterness that still festers in the hearts of many Jews and Palestinians from past grievances and losses; it is no surprise that though many have never even personally met a Jewish or Palestinian person, whether stated aloud or not, they still consider each other enemies.

When things start to get a little tense with scenes of protests and hostility on the streets, the director switches back to the kids and the small but noticeable signs of hope and progress; Alaa and Lois visiting each other’s homes; Noor smiling and making friends with Lois as they munch on watermelon, and all the kids putting aside their differences and just dancing. The final competition with the children donning their best outfits along with beautiful smiles is uplifting, especially as you see all the parents join together to root them on, not as a Jewish-Israelis or Palestinian-Israelis, but merely as proud mothers and fathers.

I found Dancing in Jaffa at times depressing as it shined a glaring and unflattering light on both factions in this struggle, but overall I found its message guardedly optimistic. After all when the road is long and the obstacles are many, you have to start somewhere and in this case what better place to start than with the children. Corny but true, Whitney said it best “I believe the children are our future. Teach them well and let them lead the way.” (Amen to that!). My honest hope is that the results of Dulaine's experiment acts as a pebble tossed in water and that the small ripples of newfound understanding and fragile friendships help to reach hearts and minds far and wide.

Daring to Dream

Inspiration can come in so many forms and for me today it bares Nico Calabria’s face. I was doing my usual lunchtime net surfing today and came across this incredibly moving video. I’ll let you take a look.



This video brought tears to my eyes, not out of pity or sympathy but out of pure admiration. If it’s possible to feel pride in someone you’ve never met or had ever heard about 2:11 minutes before hitting play, then that is what I felt. Proud of this young man that overcame so much and continues to defy the odds and not let himself be defined by his limitations.

I’m sharing this video because Nico’s dream is to play World Cup soccer and your support can help make that dream come true. As a member of the USA National Amputee Soccer Team, Nico is preparing for the 2014 games to be held in Culiacan, Mexico from November 30 through December 8, 2014. Members of the US team are scattered across the country. Practicing together requires significant travel expenses and he is looking for help in offsetting those costs. If you’re interested in helping, visit Nico’s website or gofundme page. No contribution is too small and every dollar brings him one step closer to making his dream come true.

The way I see it you’re not just helping to make one dream come true, but maybe fostering hundreds or thousands of others because Nico’s dream fulfilled will serve as an inspiration to other children (boys and girls), men and women facing obstacles of their own who moved by his example will aspire to bold and seemingly unreachable dreams. After all, the first step towards attaining any dream is just daring to dream it. Click on the link and contribute what’s within your means; help make someone’s dream more than just a wish, but a reality.

Panic

Panic is the latest gripping YA novel from Lauren Oliver. Carp is a struggling town in upstate New York, where the paper factory's closing placed 40 percent of the town's adult population on unemployment leaving few opportunities for young and old alike, which might be why Panic was invented. Panic is a game for all graduating high school seniors that begins the day after graduation when wannabe participants enter the game by making a jump from a 40-foot high ridge at the local quarry. Two secret judges plan the game, name challenges, anonymously deliver instructions and award or deduct points for challenges that grow riskier and more life-threatening the longer participants stay in the game. Everyone at Carp High pays into the pot, no exceptions, with Panic's ultimate victor taking the cash prize.

Heather Nill surprised herself by entering Panic; she's never been fearless or daring, but she is desperate; desperate to get herself and her kid sister Lily out of Carp's Fresh Pines Mobile Park and away from her struggling drug addict mom Krista and stepfather Bo. Dodge Mason on the other hand isn't afraid; he's been biding his time waiting for this day and nothing and no one can stop him. "He was going to win Panic. He was going to do it for Dayna. He was going to do it for revenge." Relying on the strength and support of her best friends, Bishop and Natalie, also a Panic participant, Heather will put it all on the line for the chance at a brighter tomorrow. Despite being pitted against each other in ever riskier challenges straight out of their worst nightmares, Heather and Dodge will form an unlikely friendship that will help them discover truths about themselves, reveal unexpected secrets about the game, and maybe even find love.

I really loved this book; I found it an exciting, engrossing and page-turning thrill ride from start to finish. The tale has definite undertones of Hunger Games, but given its contemporary real-world setting I found it a little more gritty and compelling. No reaping, tracker jackers or muttations to be faced in this YA odyssey, but a no less moving look at the gutwrenching hardships found in our own very real world - fear, hunger, and homelessness. Featuring two likeable and real protagonists that offer an inspiring message of hope to those that feel trapped, lost or forgotten.

Narrated by Heather and Dodge, the chapters alternate between the two points of view and are also grouped by challenge dates, helping to build the tension as the calendar draws nearer to the end of summer and the games dangerous culmination. The challenges themselves feature Fear Factor-type dares but all faced without the benefit of safety nets or fake bullets, with real consequences where the difference between success or failure means death.

I loved the dynamic between all of the characters, not only Heather and Dodge, but the story's supporting cast (Bishop, Nat, Lily, Anne) as well. Despite it being a YA novel, I still connected and could commiserate with Heather's initial feelings of self-doubt and admired her newfound strength and determination when she was no longer just fighting for herself. I think we all find untapped well-springs of courage and endurance when we carry the weight of someone else's happiness on our shoulders; even more so when that person is someone we love. I was equally won over by Dodge and his unquestioning loyalty to those he loved.

Panic offers an enjoyable story with real characters facing a high stakes gamble in which they've gone all in with the hopes of earning a ticket out of their troubled past and into a winning future.

Happy Earth Day!

Nature, the Gentlest Mother
By Emily Dickinson

Nature, the gentlest mother,
Impatient of no child,
The feeblest or the waywardest,
Her admonition mild

In forest and the hill
By traveller is heard,
Restraining rampant squirrel
Or too impetuous bird.

How fair her conversation,
A summer afternoon,--
Her household, her assembly;
And when the sun goes down

Her voice among the aisles
Incites the timid prayer
Of the minutest cricket,
The most unworthy flower.

When all the children sleep
She turns as long away
As will suffice to light her lamps;
Then, bending from the sky

With infinite affection
And infiniter care,
Her golden finger on her lip,
Wills silence everywhere.